by Ryan Trinidad (written on July 31)
KB Burns (left) and Ryan Trinidad on the boat cruise
Today we traveled to the Volta Lake in Akosombo. Nothing is new, the traffic here in Accra is no joke. Therefore we leave hours ahead of time, 5:30 am. Waking up at 7:00 am is a challenge to me already, but like I said before, I have something exciting to look forward to everyday I am here. As we ride through different areas I realize we are passing through places that look just like certain parts of Washington. There were green trees everywhere. It’s surreal to think a place half way around the world looks identical to the place you call home.
As we near the dam we learn a few interesting facts. We learned that the Volta Dam encases the largest man-made lake in the world. It also provides only 20% of it’s energy to the nation of Ghana and surrounding countries, while the other 80% goes towards an American company who helped fund the dam. This in my eyes put a lot into perspective on control. Not to start a debate, but I thought this was unfair and wrong. In the wide scope of things, I can see why Americans aren’t always the favorites in foreign countries.
Volta Dam
We get to the lake and ride a cruise to the center of the lake, where the Dodi Princess Island is located. The ship had catered food and a live band. It was funny to see how similar the entertainment aspects were presented. Again, things aren’t that different here. I felt like I was on a small cruise ship on the Puget Sound. Long story short, it was a fun touristic experience.
The walk onto Dodi Princess Island
The ride back was actually my favorite part of the day. I say this because sometimes the simple things make you happier than any extravagant and expensive gift or experience. One person would shout out a line from an old school song, and the rest of the van would finish it. We sang and sang some more. It was good to hear everyone’s choice and tastes in music. We sang everything from Biz Markie to Michael Jackson. It was an experience that you couldn’t buy. As time passed the sun started to set. We all stopped and witnessed our first setting sun in Africa. It looked very different to the setting suns we were used to back at home. It was red. It was calm. Flat out, it was amazing…
The view from the rear of the boat
